The banging of a gong is what the ninja awake to the next morning, as Wu demands their attention.
"Evil doesn't sleep, and neither should you!" He calls cheerfully. Kai grumpily jumps out of bed, the floor creaking heavily, nearly breaking after so long being unused and untouched. Cole, Jay and Zane try to hide under their covers, before finally getting up.
"I get what you're on about, but if you want us to unlock our full potentials, shouldn't we get a good nights rest?" Kai argues lightly, as he attempts to open the blinds, only to have them fall off. "Fuck." He curses.
"You call that rest? I think my back has more lumps than the mattress." Cole complains.
'He's never had to rough it out in the wilds, I suppose. Surprising, for a climber.' Vex notes with a chuckle.
"We were up so late talking about how cool it was to have a roof over our heads, as well as a new head-quarters, that I guess we lost track of time." Jay adds, trying to brush his teeth, only for dust to come out of the tap.
"What is our lesson today, Sensei. Is it mastering the strike of the scorpion, or perhaps the- gah!" Zane suddenly falls through the floor boards, the particular board he was standing on being far too weak.
"I think today's lesson will be… chores." Wu states with a cheeky smile.
"Chores?!" Zane, Cole and Jay question in near horror.
"Well. I'm honestly surprised it took so long for you to make us do any." Kai admits.
"Ninja fight, Sensei, we don't clean." Cole argues over the top of Kai.
"In order to respect ourselves, we must respect our new home, and where we are from. And this place is a long way from becoming a Ninja Head-quarters." Wu retorts, as he begins to walk away. "I expect things to be spotless by the time i return. And put your backs into it." With a final sounding of the gong, Wu departs.
One Spinjitzu Based Cleaning Montage Later
Wu and Nya return, both impressed by the refurbished ship. Kai immediately notices their presences, and looks to them, from his spot watching the others play their game.
"What took you so long?" He taunts in a good-natured manner, cheeky smile on his face.
"This place looks amazing. I'm impressed with what you've done." Nya admits.
"Ninja don't just fight, Nya. We clean." At Cole's words, Kai rolls his eyes.
"You have exceeded my expectations." Wu adds, stroking his beard with a smile. "But can you keep it up." Nya then looks through the window, noticing something.
"Looks like we're about to have some visitors. Loud ones at that." Nya notes.
"Ah, it's my parents." Jay sighs. "Please, if they start yapping, don't get em going, okay? They don't know when to quit, and if you start talking, then they'll start talking, and half the day is gone cause they just-"
"I think we get it, Jay." Kai buts in, stopping the lightning mouthed ninja.
One tour and awkward moments I couldn't be bothered to write later, along with a few days and nights to skip over
Kai watched, and worked, as the others teased Jay about his family and home, though none of them meaning anything bad by it, mostly just trying to get him to go visit them.
"I know what you're trying to do." Jay chuckles sarcastically. "Look, I might have promised to visit my parents, but there's a lot of stuff on my plate." He argues. Nya then walks in, and you can see how Jay just melts inside when looking at her. "Hi, Nya." He's head over heels for her. Kai chuckles quietly at seeing this.
'Never gets old.' Vex even chuckles.
"You gonna visit your parents today?" She asks.
"Uh, sure am. Just about to leave." Jay makes a complete 180.
"Tell them I say hi." She says, before leaving again. The ninja then look to Jay with a frown.
"What? So my plate's not that full." He states. Everyone goes to grab their dragons, only to find them uncooperative, and scales littering the ground around them.
"Seems they're malting." Kai notes, a hint of sadness in his voice. "Guess this is goodbye for now, Ash." Kai pats his dragon lovingly.
"Wait, goodbye?" Jay asks in concern.
"Every adolescent dragon goes through a transformation before it becomes an adult. We need to allow them to migrate East to the Spirit Coves for their transformation." Wu explains.
"Will we see them again?" Zane then asks.
"It's hard to say." Wu admits. "They could stay as they are, but change their form to be more suited for their element, or they could go through a metamorphosis and become one dragon from four. But we need to let them follow their path." Jay sighs, then makes his way over to Nya.
"Well, I guess I'll have to go on this long walk all by myself. Would be nice to have company." He plays it dramatically, and the ninja all smirk, each having the same thought go through their minds.
"Of course we'll go with you, buddy." Kai pipes up first, a massive smile on his face.
"I could use a break." Cole adds, walking over. Zane follows close behind.
"All you had to do was ask." He adds. Jay watches in horror, before sighing and facepalming. The dragons are let loose, and everyone watches as they fly East, walking in the same direction as they slowly make their way to the Junkyards.
"Of all the days to lose our rides." Jay sighs, as Wu plays the Sacred Flute, catching Zane's attention.
"That flute." He begins. "You've never told us why it's so special."
"Long ago, there were many flutes like this one. Created to combat the powers of the Serpentine and drive them underground. But over time, Ninjago has forgotten it's ancestors wisdom, and now this is the only one." Wu explains.
"As far as I learned, it's because all the Snake Charmers were killed during the war, and they were the only ones to know how to make such a flute. Regular flutes have no effect, after all." Kai adds.
"I get the lesson. Respect your elders or suffer the consequences." Jay snarks. "Boy, you guys are laying it on thick." Wu then chuckles as Jay walks to the front of the junkyard.
"Perhaps you are only hearing what you need to hear." Wu retorts, as Jay begins to look around in worry. Nya walks up to his side.
"What is it?" She asks.
"It's quiet." Jay answers, his voice hard and serious. "My family is never quiet." He dons his hood, the others following suit as they rush into the junkyard. The faint sounds of muffled voices catches their trained ears' attention, and Jay swiftly frees his parents from the giant fridge they had been trapped in. The first thing Kai notices when Jay rips the gag off his parents, are the two fangs in their mouths, replacing the human eye teeth. The next is how they lengthen the S'.
"The bite of the Fangpyre." Wu states. "Once their venom is injected, it can turn anything into a Serpent. It's only a matter of time before the transformation is complete." The rumble of engines and scrap alert the ninja to their enemies presence, as a wrecking ball rolls into view, a Halloween-esqe face glowing on it.
"Uh, is that wrecking ball staring at me?" Cole asks.
"I think it's staring at all of us." Kai admits, a bloodthirsty grin on his face as he unsheathes the sword of fire. "Wu, you don't have any qualms about seeing snake blood spilled, right?"
"No. But I'd rather you didn't. You shouldn't have to carry the burden of killing another living being yet." Wu warns.
"If that's all you're worried about, then it should be fine. This won't be the first time I've killed, and it won't be the last." Kai states, dashing into the fray, immediately slicing away at the Fangpyre in the way. The wrecking ball goes after Jay's parents, and the ninja, who are all grouped up. They scatter, with Jay pushing his parents to safety. As they focus on surviving the contraptions, Kai continues to cut his way through the Serpentine, swiftly making his way to Lloyd and smashing the boom box.
"AH!" Lloyd shouts in surprise, but Kai ignores him, instead going for the Fangpyre General, attempting to cut his hand off, only for the General knock him away with his tail. No longer on the junk-pile, and he attempt at a surprise attack failed, Kai returns to his comrades, only to come face to face with a giant 'Jay' statue brought to life. Behind them, the maniacal wrecking ball stood against them.
The wrecking ball is swung towards them, and the ninja jump away. However, Jay uses it to jump into the air, landing on the cockpit of the vehicle and kicking the driver out.
"Alright." Jay states with a smile. "Let's see what Serpentine Tech can do." The driver tries to run, now that he was a lone figure, only for Kai to behead him without mercy. Cole blocks a strike from the living statue, holding his own for a moment before the force and weight begin to push him down. Jay manages to swing the wrecking ball into the statue, knocking it down. Kai immediately throws a ball of fire from his sword onto it, setting the creature/object alight, burning it to ash with a blue/white flame. Jay leaps out of the wrecking ball, and Kai incinerates that as well.
With their enemies defeated, the ninja look to Lloyd and the Fangpyre General. Lloyd calls for a retreat, and a helicopter appears behind them. They board the pad that is connected to the underside of the chopper and fly away.
"He's getting away with the staff!" Nya shouts in concern.
"Right now would be a good time to have those dragons." Jay sighs in annoyance, the ninja all feeling somewhat defeated.
"There is still a way." Wu states.
"How?" Jay asks.
"Part of reaching your own full potential, is understanding your weapons potential." Wu lectures. "Once in tuned with a focused heart, it's secrets and powers can be unlocked."
"THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO BE CRYSPTIC!" Jay explodes, his voice panicky and desperate.
"He means our weapons can be vehicles themselves." Kai translates. "Focus in on your weapon. Listen to what it is saying. Feel it's energy coursing through you." Kai instructs. "Imagine the vehicle that speaks to you and your weapon most. Imagine being in the drivers seat or cockpit." Around Jay, lightning begins to spread, metal forming from the sparks emitted by his weapon as it begins to disintegrate and reform. A fighter jet similar in style to an Sukhoi 47 Berkut. It's forward swept wings could be retracted into a smaller form, but was currently out, finned like a feathered wing.
Cole forms an All Terrain vehicle, it's engine howling like a Skyline. Zane gets an all purpose snowmobile, it's engine reminiscent of a Supra. And Kai gets a motorbike with nothing really special about it's engine. Jay manages to somehow steal the staff out of the Fangpyre General's hands, but gets so excited that his jet reforms into the nun-chucks, leaving him to fall. With no room in any of their own vehicles for two to comfortably sit, the ninja can just watch in horror, until Nya catches him in his parents car. With the staff in their grasp, they retreat, making their way back to the ship.
Once onboard, Nya takes Ed and Edna to get them cured. The ninja and Wu rush to the bridge, and begin to activate the systems of the Bounty. Kai notices the Serpentine closing in on them first.
"Jay, I think it's time for you to press the button!" Kai warns. Jay agrees, and presses the button, only for nothing to happen.
"Oh come on!" He begins whacking the console in hopes for it to work. "I don't get what's wrong. I did everything how it was supposed to be done!" Ed then walks up to him.
"Mind if I take a look?" He asks, his form back to normal now that the antivenom was in his system. Jay, after a moment of hesitation, lets him at it. Within a few second, of having his head in the mechanisms, Ed looks to Jay. "Try now." Jay presses the button again, and the Bounty shudder and shifts, enough to send everyone tumbling, and the staff to fly out of Nya's hand and out of the Bounty as it takes off.
Now in the clear, and the ship no longer shuddering, everyone can relax. They all head onto the deck, looking out into the sky that they now travelled through. Jay spends time with his parents, and Kai stayed back, watching them converse, when Wu walks up to him.
"You knew how to use your weapon into a vehicle, and were able to teach it to Jay and the others." Wu notes in curiosity.
"The Golden Weapons aren't the only ones with hidden abilities in them. My own katanas have a similar ability." Kai admits. To be completely honest, the Golden Weapons aren't too dissimilar to the special weapons I make. The only real difference is the Elemental properties."
"So why not tell them sooner?" Wu asks.
"Well, for one, we had our dragons." Kai begins, before looking at Wu. "But mostly, because it's your job to teach us. You're our Sensei. Nothing will ever change that."